Hard to believe my last post was a whole week ago! I’m so sorry I feel like I’ve neglected y’all. My work life has become a bit crazy. I’m freelancing full time now and am juggling lots of projects. I took my laptop up to bed the other night and somewhere between 1am and 2am I fell asleep ON the laptop. Luckily there were a few snoring dogs (and maybe a snoring man too 😉 that woke me up. I finished up my work and met my deadline. But that’s the freelance life. Feast or famine. So I’m trying to take all assignments I can right now.

Let’s see….I’ll fill you in on some of the highlights of the last week:

July 1: I spent the beginning of the week freelancing on-site in Manhattan at Scholastic and enjoyed ferry ride commuting with my friend Lisa and decadent snacks from Dean & Deluca.

Honestly if you ever come visit NYC in the summer take a ride on the Staten Island Ferry before sunset. You won't regret it! And it's FREE!

Honestly if you ever come visit NYC in the summer take a ride on the Staten Island Ferry before sunset. You won’t regret it! And it’s FREE!

Coffee and a dark chocolate sea salt candy bar was the first of many treats. By the end of the week I moved up to gourmet donuts. (Not pictured because I inhaled the donut before I took a pic).

Coffee and a dark chocolate sea salt candy bar was the first of many treats. By the end of the week I moved up to gourmet donuts. (Not pictured because I inhaled the donut before I took a pic).

July 2: I realized that with working so much I hadn’t been for a run in a week! So I went out in the evening for a very much needed stress relieving run.

Evening run

Evening run

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July 3: I went with Mr. SOTSS and his girls to their cousin’s 4th birthday party. It was a fun outdoor Frozen themed BBQ. The cake was homemade by the birthday girl’s grandma and boy oh boy was it good! Alternating lemon and strawberry cake layers with the perfect vanilla frosting in between. It was like eating a big cupcake.

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The birthday girl's reaction to one of her gifts....she's not only super cute but she has the most adorable 4 year old voice.

I took a bunch of photos but this one of the birthday girl’s reaction to one of her gifts was my favorite of the day….she’s not only super cute but she has the most adorable 4 year old voice too.

July 4th: I ran a local 5 miler in the morning on Staten Island.

11221852_10206980954744023_5787009635830465407_oThere’s nothing like a local race…getting up an hour before, forking over a little cash and just running. I really didn’t even think about running until a few days before. I had run this race in 2011 and 2012 but forgot that there are some hills. There’s a super steep one between mile 1.5 and 1.75.

7-4-15-5milerI finished in 50:22 which is my slowest time on this course but not by much (and I wasn’t really trying to run fast so I’m ok with that.) In 2011 I finished in 49:10 and in 2012 50:09.

After the race I showered and changed and then headed to Mr. SOTSS’s house to dogsit for his boy Chester for a few hours. I had lots of freelance work to do so I took to the deck with a glass of wine and the pooches and enjoyed some fresh air while I got my work done.

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I brought a yoga mat too so I could do some stretching and Chester took to it immediately…

Yoga mat = Dog bed

Yoga mat = Dog bed

Downward Dog

Downward Dog

After Chester-sitting, Duncan and I headed over to my sister-in-law’s for a bit. She was dog-sitting for Rylee who just so happens to be another labradoodle from the same breeder that my Duncan and her Casey are from. So we tried to get all 3 of them on the couch for an “Alumni” shot. Well, tried is the keyword.

doodle pallooza!

doodle pallooza! Duncan, Rylee and Casey (who is obviously so excited for this photo)

July 5th: Sunday Funday with Mr. SOTSS! We hiked for a couple of hours, enjoyed some more outdoor time relaxing on his deck, ran a few errands and then went for dinner and sat outside with our dogs at our feet.

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We’re all kinds of happy these days

paw prints!

paw prints!

Duncan looks adorable in Mr. SOTSS treasured Rutgers hat

Duncan looks adorable in Mr. SOTSS treasured Rutgers hat

who let the dogs out?!!

who let the dogs out?!!

Chester was off hunting down a chipmunk. Thankfully the chipmunk escaped

Chester was off hunting down a chipmunk. Thankfully the chipmunk escaped

It's too hot. We'd like to go back in

It’s too hot. We’d like to go back in

I happen to love grilled chicken wraps and french fries. Maybe you could, you know....accidentally drop a piece or two of chicken or a fry?

I happen to love grilled chicken wraps and french fries. Maybe you could, you know….accidentally drop a piece or two of chicken or a fry?

It’s really beginning to feel like summer! Well, I’m off to start mapping out what my NYC Marathon training schedule will look like. I’m going away twice in August so I’ll have to get creative with my long runs on those weekends.

Hope you all had a great weekend.

What’s your favorite part of your home? 

I love my bedroom at my house and I love Mr. SOTSS’ outdoor space (yard/patio) best at his house

Random question: What is your favorite salad dressing

I love the greek dressing from Panera but last night at the restaurant we were at I had their house dressing which was a creamy balsamic vinaigrette and it was so good!

Happy Monday…well it’s sorta late so I’ll also say Happy Tuesday too..

I spent the entire weekend with Mr SOTSS and it was such a treat!

Happiness is...

Happiness is…

It’s rare we have 2 solid days that are completely just for us to do whatever, whenever.I actually arrived at Mr. SOTSS’s house on Friday night after work and was in the middle of what I can now diagnose (per Google of course) as a spasm of the Piriformis =)  Weak pelvis/hips ladies and gents! The Piriformis is a pelvis stablizer and it makes sense since my hips/core are weak and my lower back has been bothering me that my Piriformis has been working hard at stablizing the pelvis. The whole kinetic chain thing! I used heat, ice and wine to alleviate the pain as best I could. Saturday morning I wasn’t anywhere near able to run but at least Mr. SOTSS got to run. He ran 8 miles with his loyal pooch Chester. It was cool and drizzly which allowed Chester the opportunity for the full 8. Since I couldn’t run, I walked Duncan into town to drop a card in the mailbox and then I tried to bike ride.
bikeSuccess! I hadn’t been on my bike since last fall. I kept it in the easier gear and just pedaled around Mr SOTSS’ neighborhood for about 30 minutes.
Then I came back and found this video on YouTube showing how to use a tennis ball to work out the spasm.
(The piriformis is right in the meaty part of your glute and sits on the sciatic nerve which is why it can be so painful) I have to say that within a few hours of doing the tennis ball trigger point massage and the pidgeon stretch I felt so much better!
Saturday night we cooked dinner together and then went to see Ted2. Cooking together was so lovely.
Fajitaless chicken

Fajitaless chicken

The movie Ted2 was really funny. I am 12 and get a kick out of teddy bears that curse. =)
Movie essentials

Movie essentials

Sunday morning we went on a hike with our dog hiking meetup group. And then we all had lunch together. It was raining but the trees protected us from most of the drops. So we got to enjoy the sounds of a downpour but only felt a drizzle.
It's like I'm wearing a raincoat dress. Not my best look!

It’s like I’m wearing a raincoat dress. Not my best look!

Always.on.the.go!

Always.on.the.go!

dirty doodle

dirty doodle

I looked up and took this picture. Only got one raindrop on my face

I looked up and took this picture. Only got one raindrop on my face

Sporting my Pro Compression leggings. I really love them

Sporting my Pro Compression leggings. I really love them

It was awesome! In the evening we made dinner together again. He did the outside grilling and I did the indoor sautéing.

We split the work. He did the outside grilling and I did the indoor sautéing

Grilled asparagus, chicken, salmon and sauteed eggplant and squash

After dinner we all just did a whole lotta lounging…
pile of paws

pile of paws

His tag matches the patio furniture so nicely

His tag matches the patio furniture so nicely

Chester was my heating pad on Friday night. Thanks buddy.

Chester was my heating pad on Friday night. Thanks buddy.

And then I had to go home. BOO! Well, I hope to run a little bit toward the end of the week and over the holiday weekend.

Oh and guess what? I won a Pro Compression sweepstakes/contest thingy held by Ali On The Run. I scored myself these awesome compression sleeves.

What's better than Pro Compression Calf Sleeves? Free Pro Compression Calf Sleeves!

What’s better than Pro Compression Calf Sleeves? Free Pro Compression Calf Sleeves!

Yup! It was a truly wonderful weekend. And now I’ve gotta get back to my work. I’m back to freelancing full time and boy oh boy am I busy right now. Have a great week!

Do you wear compression gear?

Did it rain at all for you this weekend?

Do you like to grill?

Hi there.

Happy March! 3 weeks until Spring! So much to tell you guys…

First, I get my MRI results on my shoulder tomorrow. Then on Tuesday morning I have my appointment made to see the sports injury chiro about the knee. Now let’s backtrack…

Last Wednesday, I hit the gym during my lunch break and tested out the stationary bike to see if my knee would be bothered by it or not. I’m happy to report that it went well.

bike ride at gym

pedaling

boring stationary bike ride

boring stationary bike ride

Covert locker room gym selfie so people don't think I'm weird

Covert locker room gym selfie so people don’t think I’m weird

Honestly though, for me, biking and not going anywhere is very boring. More boring than running on a treadmill. So I needed to occupy my mind. Before you knew it I had my iPhone in hand and was Googling a bunch of stuff that I wanted to know.

I wanted to see what the finish time limits are for the 2 half marathons I have this month. The NYC Half on March 15th is a 3 hour limit (or a 13:45 pace) and the Love Run on March 29th is a 3 1/2 hour limit (or a 15 minute pace). So basically I can walk/run both of these with an emphasis on the walk and probably complete them without my knee going crazy. Of course I’ll wait for professional advisement when I see doc on Tuesday before I say this will definitely be my plan. But honestly the knee isn’t phased at all by walking.

Thursday I made a delicious dinner.

Chicken and Steak Shish Kabob

Chicken and Steak Shish Kabob

I hardly ever cook so this is very blog-post-worthy. I also made some amazing discoveries. Party cake Peeps…

party cake peeps

party cake peeps….for keeps!

And, the best discovery of my life…

Nutella and Girl Scout Shortbread cookie combo

Nutella and Girl Scout Shortbread cookie combo

Nutella sandwiched between two Girl Scout Shortbread cookies. Oh my it was so good.

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In my last post I was still coming to terms with this injury and raw emotion poured out. Thank you so much to those who commented or even just read through my emotional word dump. It’s so helpful for me to have this blog and to be able to get stuff out like that. That was the catalyst for me to get back to being me…HAPPY SALLY. Sally who makes a Plan B when Plan A can’t happen. And so I did…

That 5k I was supposed to run on Saturday? I still went but I walked it and even with my limp I blew past so many other walkers. I think it took me about 57 or 58 minutes to complete. And you know what? It was fun anyway. I still got to meet up with friends beforehand and catch up on life.

smiley

Alex, Jane, Jane’s friend Amy, me and……OK, so my camera-shy boyfriend finally allowed me to take some creative license so I don’t have to crop him out of every pic. I’m pleased to present his blog persona: the always smiling, blue-eyed Mr. Sweat Out The Small Stuff (SOTSS)

Mr. SOTSS (Sweat Out the Small Stuff) finished in less than 25 minutes and then came back to the course with his dog and they walked the last mile with me. And afterward I went out for breakfast with my friends Jane and Alex who also ran it. The coolest part of the morning was seeing the college gymnasium filled from wall to wall with thousands of toys! The “entry fee” to this race was a toy ($10 or more in value). Giving IS so much better than receiving. This I know.

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Me, Jane and Jane's friend Bill

Me, Jane and Jane’s friend Bill

I iced my ankle a lot afterward. It didn’t feel any worse or better so I am happy about that.

My next compromise for the weekend was for the hike I wanted to do yesterday. I knew it was described as “moderate to strenuous” and that there were spots along the trail that would require literally using hands and feet to scale rocks! I knew that my ankle brace wasn’t going to be enough. My sneakers wouldn’t cut it for this hike. I am low on the funds front these days and fancy $200 hiking boots weren’t an option but I scored a great deal on some really sturdy Merrell hiking boots.

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They were only $79 at Marshall’s. I took Duncan for a test walk in the woods to see how the shoes felt.

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